Marilee J. Springer is a partner concentrating her practice on the representation of tax-exempt organizations, donors and governmental entities and affiliates. In this capacity, Marilee focuses on corporate, structuring, governance and tax issues. Marilee’s dedicated service in the public sector provides valuable insights and knowledge that will benefit tax-exempt and governmental entities.

Marilee returned to Ice Miller in August 2014 after serving as Deputy Chief of Staff and Senior Policy Director for Indiana Governor Mike Pence. As Deputy Chief of Staff, Marilee was responsible for oversight and management of executive agencies, the cabinet, boards and commissions; management of the personnel process for selection of agency heads and the performance evaluation process; and input regarding policy, legislative and communications strategies for the Governor and executive agencies. As Senior Policy Director, Marilee led transition team efforts to select and orient the Governor’s policy team before inauguration. Marilee oversaw the policy development of the Governor’s first legislative agenda, “The Roadmap for Indiana.” During 2011 and 2012, Marilee served as the Policy Director for Education and Workforce, assisting then Congressman Pence in the development of his campaign policies in K12 education, higher education and adult workforce.

With experience in the public and tax exempt sectors, Marilee works with her clients to deploy public advocacy strategies that involve 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), and PAC activities. The intersection of these structures allows her clients to maximize their impact in public policy, advocacy (both grassroots and direct lobbying) and political activity.

Marilee’s practice focuses on tax-exempt entities with an emphasis on colleges and universities, trade associations, private foundations, health care entities, education reform and charter schools, research organizations, and governmental entities and affiliates. Marilee’s work with colleges and universities involves issues relating to unrelated business income tax (UBIT), executive compensation, sponsorship agreements, the use of affiliated entities (e.g., for-profits, foundations and other tax-exempt subsidiaries), general corporate and tax-exempt compliance, research arrangements, relationships with commercial sponsors, charitable contributions, and tax-driven employment issues.

In her work with private foundations and donors, Marilee assists clients in developing philanthropic priorities, making charitable grants, creating accountability metrics and processes to evaluate ongoing grants, and assessing various vehicles for accomplishing their charitable purposes (e.g., direct grants, private foundations and donor-advised funds).

Marilee advises her diverse clientbase in all aspects of their operations from formation, applying for tax-exemption, advice regarding the impact of proposed or new legislation, conflicts of interest, board member relations, reviewing and negotiating material contracts, UBIT, grant programs, etc. In addition, she has assisted numerous tax-exempt clients in evaluating, structuring and documenting corporate reorganizations involving mergers, liquidations, dissolutions, taxable subsidiaries (C-Corporations and LLCs), and other sophisticated structuring options. Marilee advises tax-exempt clients on the reasonableness of compensation to executives or insiders, including the application of the intermediate sanctions regulations.

She received a dual bachelor of arts in psychology and law and society, with distinction, from Purdue University in 1993. She received her juris doctorate, magna cum laude, from Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law in 1996, where she served as a note development editor for the Indiana Law Review.